Picture of the Day - The Life Cycle of Stars

In this stunning picture of the giant galactic nebula NGC 3603, the crisp resolution of the Hubble Space Telescope captures various stages of the life cycle of stars in one single view.

The Life Cycle of Stars. Credit: NASA/ESA

The very energetic radiation from young hot stars in the star cluster NGC 3603 is bursting into colder gas and dust making the gas glow. The radiation from the stars has blown a ‘bubble’ around the cluster free from gas.